DUSHANBE, Tajikistan, August 2. Tajikistan will start producing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for civilian purposes, Trend reports.
The announcement was made by the Minister of Industry and New Technologies, Sherali Kabir, during a press conference.
"The technology for drone production is simple, and the components are created by domestic companies," Kabir noted.
According to the minister, the drones will be used in geology, geodesy, agriculture, topography, transportation, and disaster prevention and response.
In June of this year, the government of Tajikistan approved the Concept for the Development of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles until 2044. The plan includes developing military drones and training specialists for their operation.
"Every sovereign state must create such devices to strengthen its defense capabilities, and we will develop this sector," Kabir emphasized.
The production of drones, like that of electric vehicles, falls under the mechanical engineering industry, the minister added.
Overall, the industrial output for the first six months totaled 22.6 billion somoni ($2.1 billion), an increase of 2.3 billion somoni ($217.1 million) compared to the same period last year. Of the total industrial production, more than 57 percent came from the manufacturing industry, 21.6 percent from mining, 20.8 percent from electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning supply, and 0.5 percent from water supply and waste processing.
The growth in the industrial sector was driven by increased production of petroleum products (up 2.2 times), wood and paper products (up 81 percent), metal products (up 18.1 percent), textiles and leather goods (up 17.8 percent), rubber and plastic products (up 16.4 percent), and food products (up 8.1 percent).